Modeling and Analysis of Power Line Communications for Application in Smart Grid

TL;DR

This paper models and analyzes power line communication technologies for smart grid applications, comparing modulation schemes through simulations to enhance energy infrastructure performance.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed simulation-based comparison of ASK, FSK, and PSK modulations for PLC in smart grids, using real system parameters from FPL.

Findings

ASK, FSK, and PSK have different tradeoffs in PLC performance

Simulation results highlight the most suitable modulation for specific smart grid scenarios

Practical system parameters improve the relevance of the analysis

Abstract

Smart grid is an energy infrastructure that increases energy efficiency by using communication infrastructure, smart meters, smart appliances, automated control and networking, and more. This paper focuses on the Power Line Communication (PLC) aspect and technologies used in the smart grid. There are various challenges and advancements in the smart grid; this research discusses how PLC can improve smart grid performance. In order to provide applicable results, practical PLC system parameters and other required data was obtained from Florida Power and Light (FPL). Modeling of the PLC system with different types of digital modulations was conducted using MATLAB/Simulink software and Python. The benefits and design tradeoffs of Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK), Frequency Shift Keying (FSK), and Phase Shift Keying (PSK) are discussed. The modulation schemes are compared on the basis of their applicability to a practical PLC network by comparing the results of the simulations